6 months ago
2
A magistrate’s tribunal successful Ranni, Pathanamthitta, sent Murari Babu, erstwhile Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) administrative officer, to the custody of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the misappropriation of the gold-plated copper panels from the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple.
Earlier, the SIT had arrested Mr. Babu connected suspicion of having facilitated the fraud by falsely categorising the gilded panels donated to the temple by industrialist Vijay Mallya successful 1998 arsenic made of axenic copper.
The alleged fraud occurred successful 2019, erstwhile the TDB accepted the dubious connection of Unnikrishnan Potti, the premier accused successful the lawsuit and a erstwhile temple assistant, to reconstruct the “frayed” panels to their archetypal aureate sheen.
The SIT had arrested Mr. Potti successful October connected the complaint of smelting the gilded panels for the gold. They are besides investigating him connected suspicion of replicating the gilded moulds covering the temple’s chromatic carvings and sculptures successful cheaper alloy, to merchantability the originals to affluent collectors.
The SIT has besides indicted him for chartering the spiritual artefacts to affluent devotees successful Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai for backstage worship.
Meanwhile, the SIT produced the erstwhile Thiruvabharanam Commissioner, K.S. Baiju, earlier a magistrate successful Thiruvananthapuram and obtained his judicial remand. The SIT is apt to question his custody for questioning.
The SIT had arrested Mr. Baiju, who was successful complaint of the temple’s treasury, for allegedly facilitating the fraud. His lack connected the time the encasings were dismantled and handed implicit to Mr. Potti had reportedly aroused the SIT’s suspicion. Moreover, the SIT has accused him of failing to oversee his deputies’ categorisation of the gilded panels arsenic made of axenic copper. Furthermore, the lack of the temple smith erstwhile the panels were removed from the sculptures had pushed Mr. Baiju into the ambit of the SIT probe. D. Sudheesh Kumar, erstwhile enforcement serviceman of the TDB, is successful judicial custody pursuing his apprehension past week.
